Re: ok how long does it really take..............Posted by Ladydance6/24/2012 5:09:00 AM

I'm glad everything is going well, but a word of warning. You are, in my opinion, making a rookie mistake, by running all over town taking lessons at different studios. You will get conflicting info and if the emphasis is different at different places, you may miss or ignore critical info. I would not attempt intricate figures until you have the basics down cold and your technique is solid. Intricate figures executed by someone with poor or no technique looks terrible and fools no one. As well, no woman can follow a hard pattern unless they know their steps and it is lead extemely well. You need to work on posture, always an ongoing problem. Head back, neck in collar, elbows in front of your body. Do not lead with your arms or your top. Many men lean forward with their head, body or both to lead a figure. Footwork is extremely important. Do you know if you step with heel or a toe. Where is the body and/or foot rise? In a rush to get dancing, beginners blow all this info off and get bad habits that are hard to break.For example: One man at our studio started dancing standard looking straight at his partner, scrunched over, elbows down. Now he can't break himself of this habit and doesn't even realize he is doing it. Looks terrible. He was learning silver level stuff until the owner of the studio, pulled the instructor aside and told him to go back to basics until their technique improves.